This book reminded me why I hate classics.

Like Frankenstein, it starts out with a great premise: what if a portrait bore the brunt of age and sin, while the person remained in the flush of youth? How would that person feel as they watched a constant reminder of their true nature develop? And like Frankenstein, it gets completely bogged down in uninteresting details and takes forever to get to the interesting bits. Seriously, in a 230-page novel, the portrait doesn't even start to change until 100 pages in.

And it's so damn flowery. Every time Lord Harry starts talking (and believe me, he likes to talk) he's so witty. Witty witty witty. Ahahaha, you're soooooooo worldly wise and charming. And entirely cynical! You just have a quip for everything, don't you? Look, reader, look. See Harry. See Harry corrupt Dorian. Corrupt, Harry, corrupt!

I actually ended up skimming most of the book. I really thought about stopping, but I hoped it would redeem itself by the end. It didn't. I should have just skipped to the last page. So to save you, dear reader, the same pain I went through, is the summary of Dorian Gray (spoilers, of course):

Dorian semi-consciously makes Faustian bargain to transfer all his sins and signs of age to his portrait. He sins and feels guilty about it, but keeps doing it anyway. He finally decides to get ride of the portrait/evidence and stabs the painting. Surprise, it breaks the spell, and he is left ugly, old and dead while his portrait returns to its original form. The end. You can thank me later.

UPDATE 9/3/12: Since this review is still around and kicking four years later, I thought I might point like-minded individuals to a new parody of classic literature to the tune of Call Me Maybe: Call Me Ishmael!

I was sure i'll like this book but it was so boring, long and uninteresting. The long descriptive pasages were the death of me! I read a paragraph and immediately forgot what it was about, which was pretty frustrating.

Not for me.

For a novel about immoral rich people, I enjoyed this immensely. It had a delightfully Gothic atmosphere, a good balance between idea-filled dialogue and plot, beautiful prose, and an excellent hook. The latter being the portrait as well as the constant uncertainty: Will he try to change his ways or do something even worse? Will one of those affected by his cruelty get their vengeance? It ends beautifully, too. And yet, I'm a picky hoe - there's way too much misogyny, the whole premise is founded on the idea that sins leave a mark on one's appearance, and the seven whole pages of infodumping about perfumes, instruments (this one very racist), precious gems, tapestries, and ecclesiastical vestments were quite unnecessary. 4.5 stars

(1)
اللوحة : الـفـكرة تخرج من رأس صاحـبهـا
تبهره تلك التفاصيل الدقيقة في هذا الـوجه
الذي ينز طفولة ورقة وعـذوبة. هو مـشـروع
ناجح بالنسبة للرسام الذي ألتقط الـفـكرة ....

قرأت هذا العمل في بريطانيا – لندن. ولمن يعرف تفاصيل العصر الفكتوري وماقبله وبعده بخمسين عام سيعرف أثر هذه الأجواء على قراءة أوسكار وايلد لنص يعود للقرن التاسع عشر ميلادي علمًا أن أوسكار هو أخر ما أنتجته الفترة الفكتورية ونهضتها الأدبية التي كانت ضمن سلسلة طويلة من الحـضارة كانت أوروبا قد برزت فيه بعد أن أفلت شمس العرب.



كنت أتخيل كل شخصيات العمل أثناء قراءة الرواية. أتخيل "بازل / بازيل هولوورد" الرسام الذي هو عند أوسكار وايلد مكتشف الجمال الذي يمر بحياتنا دون أن نلتفت إليه حتى يخبرنا أحدهم أنه هو.. كنت أتخيل في أي لحظة الشر الذي يغلفه الجمال "دوريان قراي" الوسيم – حفيد كيلسو – يخرج في أي لحظة ممسك بقبضته عصاه النحيلة.. كنت أتخيل "اللورد هنري" وعنجهيته في إستخدام ثقافته على الناس ومعرفته بتاريخ المقربين من طبقته.. كنت أتخيل المارة من السيدات إيهن ستكون ضحية دوريان التالية، وأنا أنظر في المباني ذات الطراز المعماري الأوربي ومثلثات الأسطح والقرميد الأحمر حتى بقيت التفاصيل عالقة في ذاكرتي منذ (2009م) وبعد مشاهدة فيلم (بن بارنز، وكولين روث) الذي جعل الكثير يعودون للأصل - الرواية - عرفت أن الفيلم نجح لفنتازية النص. رغم أن قلة أحداث الرعب القوطي الذي لا يتجلى في غير بعض مشاهد القتل ونهاية الرواية التي وفّق أوسكار في إحكام خاتمتها بروعة.


(2)
الألوان : هاهي الآن تخـرج من كل عـبواتها
يعصرها الرسام ويوزّعـهـا بإحـترافية عالية
حسب هذه التـقاسيم لهذا الـوجه القادم من
الريف بعد أن سـحرته المدينة مثلما سحرت
الرسام هذه الملامح الملائكية. تمتزج الألوان....

عندما نويت قراءة العمل كنت أعلم أن قصته ستعجبني لمعرفتي بجوهر القصة دون التفاصيل وأنها لن تكون مثل رواية "ستوكر" الشهيرة، دراكولا، أوعمل ماري شيلي الشهير، فرانكشتاين وهما عملين بالمناسبة أعجبت بهما لكلاسيكتهما وجمال حبكتهما أكثر من القصة. بينما نص أوسكار ساحر وساخر ويحاول مخاطبة الناس من خلال الحياة في الجماد والطبيعة أكثر من الحياة التي في الجسد.


(3)
العقـد : الصفقة التي تولّد عنها خـلقٌ جديد
خلاصة الفكرة/ الرغبة، والألوان/ الحياة في
السعي لكسر كل وحشية العمر الذي يحرم
الجمال سره، الآن لن يبلغ منه هذا الوحش
شيء ولـكن سـوف يسكـنهُ شيطان اللـوحة....

كانت أمنية دوريان قراي وهو يتأمل صورته وهي تفيض شبابًا وجمال أن قال مندهشًا "إذا استطعت أن أبقى شابًا وهذه الصورة تشيخ. سأبذل كل شيء، سأمنح روحي من أجل ذلك"، وقد أستجابت له الصورة / الشيطان فوهبته الشباب ووهبها روحه. ليصبح جسده مرآة الطبقة المخملية في كل بريطانيا وليس فقط مثالًا على "دبلن" مسقط رأسه. لذا بقيت الصورة . اللوحة القاتمة محل جدل بين كل طبقات لندن إبان نشر الرواية على مراحل – فصول – فكان يخاطب تلك الطبقة التي لا تعمل ولكن مكانتها تمنحها حق العيش مما تحتفظ به من ممتلكات وإقطاعات وما يأتي من دخلها الكبير. فكان هذا النقد موجهه لهم بقسوة فكانوا عند أوسكار كلهم دوريان وكان هنري الشيطان – كما أراه – هو ذلك المجتمع الراقي السياسي الذي منحهم هذه السلطة في العربذة والإنحراف واللامبالاة والإنغماس في لذة العيش.



طبقة النبلاء كما كان يطلق عليها في العصور الوسطى أضحت في التاريخ الحديث هي الطبقة المخملية حملة لقب اللوردات وكبار التجار وهم الطبقة المخملية الذين وجه لهم أوسكار نقدًا لاذعًا حد الوجع وهو يُعرّي مجتمعهم وتفاصيلهم الصغيرة وكأنهم أتفقوا جميعًا على ممارسة السخط على الطبقة الكادحة – البلوتاريا – ونظرتهم الإستعلائية ودناءة سلوك أكثرهم إن لم يكونوا كلهم بالجملة وفق نظرة وايلد حيث كان يسخر منهم على طريقته الخاصة في أكثر من شخصية؛ الفنان وصاحب الإقطاع والطبيب والتاجر وسيدات القصور اللواتي يبحثهن عن إرضاء شهواتهن.


(4)
هاهي اللـوحة تأكل بـعضها الأخر. الألوان
تحيل نفسها لسوادٍ قـاتم وغـضب، يسمعها
تصرخ عليه في اللـيل وتسلبهُ الرضا. لـكن
الرغبة تسيطر عـليه يـباركـها منظره الآسر
في العيون الأخرى. واللوحة تـصرخ أكـثر....

الشر الذي يسكن اللوحة يغادر بقسوة نحو فضاء الواقع متمثلًا في الجنس والشذوذ وكل أكسسوارات الرذيلة التي تحدث للإنسان ليشبع رغباته حد النزق والجريمة / القتل. لم يعد دوريان يستطيع كبح جماح الشهوة وقد علم يقينًا أنه لا يشيخ طالما اللوحة سرها باقٍ بينه وبين حدود الإطار.

المجتمع الذي يمثله دوريان وبازل وهنري وكل السيدات هو عصر كان رغم رفضه للرذيلة من خلال الكتابات والمعاراك الأدبية التي نقرأ شيئًا عنها في أدب العصر الفلكتوري وحتى ما قبل هذا العصر هو عصر جنون في كل شيء بقدر جنونه في النهضة بقدر جنونه في الأدب الذي يمثل تلك الحقبة ذات القرن الواحد وقد ساهم أمثال أوسكار في سبر أغوارها وكشف تفاصيلها كما تناول "جوروج أورويل" في الكثير من نقده في كتابه (لماذا أكتب) ولكن بنظرة متحفظة وذلك لطابعه المتعالي رغم عكس ما يظهر في كتاباته!، ويبدو أنه مزاجية الفرد الإنجليزي مثال صارخ في الرواية البريطانية والإيرلنيدية خصوصًا.

(5)
المواجهة : نـهاية الـعقد. نتانة الجسد يهرب
خارج إطـار اللـوحة. يأبى البـقـاء أكـثر من
ذلك. غادرته كـل حياته الماضية. هاهو الآن
يعيش أكثر من حياة لكنه يخسر أكثر. كان
الشيطان قد خسر جولة والإنسان قد سقط....

المعارك لا تقبل خاسران أو منتصران رغم إيماني بأن كلا طرفيها خاسران. لكن الشيطان دومًا يكسب جولاته الأولى. الصورة التي أبدع فيها أوسكار كانت الفصول الأخيرة التي يبدأ فيها الإنسان دوريان من التفلت من هنري وأصبح شيطان نفسه. في إشارة على قدرة المرء أن يخلق شيطانه الذي يمثله مستغنيًا عن أي شيطانٍ آخر.



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أخيرًا وإختصارًا
هذه رائعة أوسكار قصة دوريان الإنجليزي الذي يرسمه فنان في بروتريه فيعجب بصورته ويتمنى أن يبقى شابًا لا يشيخ فيعقد صفقة مع الشيطان فيتم له ويبقى شابًا لا يتقدم عمره، وبالمقابل اللوحة هى من تشيخ وتظهر عيلها التغضنات والتجاعيد عطفًا على الآثام والشر الذي تفرزه تصرفات دوريان، وكان حتمًا عليه أن يواجهها وينتهي كل شيء، وهذا ليس حرقًا للأحداث فهذه رواية روعتها في تفاصيلها وحوارتها أكثر من حبكتها.


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فاصلة أولى :
هاري تخفيف "هنري" كان هو الشيطان الأكبر – مع حفظ الحقوق لعقلية الكراهية الإيرانية – في هذا النص الإبداعي، ولا أعلم هل كان أوسكار وايلد متدينًا؟.. على الأقل هل كان يذهب كل أحد للكنيسة كالمسلمين الذين يعرفون الدين يوم الجمعة!!.. كان هنري الشيطان الآخر خارج حدود اللوحة وخارج عقلية دوريان. كان هنري الشيطان الذي أحاط بدوريان من الخارج ثم عندما وقع تركه.

لم يكن أوسكار مصلحًا دون شك – لكنه كان يتذرع دومًا بالتبرير من يقرأ بعض أعماله وشيءٌ من سيرته سيجد عنصر دفع التهم حاضرٌ في كل أعماله (صورة دوريان روايته الوحيدة) وكذلك حتى في حياته الشخصية. يقع في الذنب / الخطيئة – وفق عقلية القرن التاسع عشر ميلادي – ثم يبدأ في التبرير ونفض الإثم عنه.

أوسكار كان يمثل معادلة الخير والشر وثمن كلاهما في الحياة. لذا تأتي أعماله (عند القراءة المتأنية) أشبه بصراع بين قابيل وهابيل بين الشيطان والإنسان. لذا كرؤية أخيرة يبدو لي أن أوسكار هو هنري وهو دوريان وهو الفنان، وإن كان هو نفسه يُصرّح عن طبيعة أعماله بالمجمل إنها ثورة كليبان وآريل كما يتصوّر ثورة القرن التاسع عشر على الأدب الواقعي والخيالي.



دون شك كان أوسكار يحاول جاهدًا من خلال قصائده وروياته الدفاع عن شذوذه الجنسي مع الرجال (أصلًا من لمن شفت صورة سيقانه لابس هيلا هوب والجزمة كولي هان فلات نسائي وأنا غاسل يدي منه) وحتى بعد خروجه من السجن بسبب قضايا أخلاقية – شذوذه – عاد من جديد لممارسة رذائله حتى توفي صغيرًا دون الخمسين، ولا نغفل عن تجريم هذه الأفعال في تلك الحقبة الماضية من القرن التاسع عشر في كثير من بلدان أوروبا


هذه صورته من صديقه الحميمي الذي أشتهر بعلاقاته الجنسية معه
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فاصلة ثانية:
نسخة ترجمة لويس عوض (دار الخيال) من أعظم الترجمات لكن تنقصها عن النسخة الإنجليزية الأصل مقدمة أوسكار وايلد عن الفن وعن هذه الرواية وهي غاية في الروعة.
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فاصلة ثالثة :
أنظر فيلم :
The Picture of Dorian Gray : 1945 / George Henry Sanders
Dorian Gray : 2009 / Ben Barnes , Colin Firth

opowiesc o mlodym oraz wybitnie pieknym mezczyznie, ktory bedac portretowanym wymawia zyczenie- chce, by to na obrazie malowaly sie jego grzechy i starosc, by nic z tego nie dotknelo jego wlasnej twarzy.
to meandry na temat ludzkiej proznosci, sensu piekna, i ,klasycznie- moranosci.
wspaniale i kunsztownie wykreowany portret (sory xd) psychologiczny doriana greya, tak samo jak jego przemiana. styl pisania natomiast byl moze nawet nader kwiecisty, pelen metafor i ubarwien, co w pewnym momencie potrafilo mnie zmeczyc.
chce tez zaznaczyc, iz ta recenzja nie jest w pelni obiektywna, ze wzgledu na moje umilowanie do konwersacji o moralnosci.
z pewnoscia warto pochylic sie nad ta ksiazka!

I really don't know why goodreads deleted the rating of my favourite book, but as it seems it happened?! O_o

WTH? *lol*
Well anyway, of course it's a five star, did you expect any different? XD

I'll definitely reread it one day and will write a proper review, because this book deserves such an awesome in-depth review that 3.500 words certainly won't be enough! *lol*

One day, this screen page is going to crack with my gushing.
That's a promise! ;-P

n  n
Arguably literature's greatest study of shallowness, vanity, casual cruelty and hedonistic selfishness, Wilde lays it down here with ABSOLUTE PERFECTION!! This was my first experience in reading Oscar Wilde and the man’s gift for prose and dialogue is magical. This story read somewhat like a dark, corrupted Jane Austen in that the writing was snappy and pleasant on the ear, but the feeling it left you with was one of hopelessness and despair.

The level of cynicism and societal disregard that Wilde’s characters display towards humanity is simply staggering. Despite the dark (or more likely because of it) this is one of the most engaging, compelling and lyrical pieces of literature I have read. The quality of the prose is nothing short masterful.

I assume most people know the basic outline of the plot, but I will give you a few sentences on it. The three main characters are Basil Hallward, Lord Henry Wotton and Dorian Gray. Basil Hallward is an artist who after painting a picture of Dorian Gray becomes obsessed with him because of his beauty (the homosexual vs. art object love Basil feels towards Dorian are left vague, likely because of the time it was written). Dorian then meets a friend Basil’s, Lord Henry, and becomes enthralled with Lord Henry’s world view, which is a form of extreme hedonism that posits the only worthwhile life is one spent pursuing beauty and satisfaction for the senses.

n  The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. Resist it, and your soul grows sick with longing for the things it has forbidden to itself, with desire for what its monstrous laws have made monstrous and unlawful.n

Well at one point, Dorian utters the famous words quoted at the beginning of my review and the “Faustian” bargain is struck.

While this story is often mentioned among the classics of the Horror genre (which I do have a problem with) this is much more a study of the human monster than it is some boogeyman. My favorite parts of the story were the extensive dialogues between the characters, usually Dorian and Lord Henry. They were wonderfully perverse and display a level of casual cruelty and vileness towards humanity that make it hard to breathe while reading. Oh, and Lord Henry reserves particular offense for the female of the species, to wit:

n  My dear boy, no woman is a genius. Women are a decorative sex. They never have anything to say, but they say it charmingly. Women represent the triumph of matter over mind, just as men represent the triumph of mind over morals.n

. n  n

YES folks...he absolutely did.

One of the most intriguing quotes I have seen from Oscar Wilde regarding this book is his comparison of himself to the three main characters. He said that he wrote the three main characters as reflections of himself. Wilde said, “Basil Hallward is what I think I am: Lord Henry is what the world thinks me: Dorian is what I would like to be—in other ages, perhaps.”

I was somewhat floored by this as I found Dorian to be a truly stark representation of evil and could not see how Wilde could find an idealized form within the character. When I say evil, I don't mean just misguided or weak-minded, someone bamboozled by the clever lectures of Lord Henry. I found Gray to be selfish, vain, inhumanly callous and sadistically cruel. I intend to try and learn more about Wilde’s outlook on this character as it truly escapes me.

Regardless, this is a towering piece of literature. Beautifully written and filled with memorable characters and a deeply moving story. A novel deserving of its status as a classic of English Literature. 5.0 stars. HIGHEST POSSIBLE RECOMMENDATION!!!!

P.S. For of audiobooks. I listened to the audio version of this read by Michael Page who has become one of my favorite narrators. His performance here was amazing.

It is a fantastic and philosophical novel that I had yet to read.
"How sad! I'm going to get old, horrible, scary. But this painting will never have a day more than this day in June. If only it could be the opposite! If it was me who remained young, and may the portrait grow old to him! To obtain that, to get it, I would give all I have! Yes, there is nothing in the world that I would refuse to give! I would give my soul to get it! "
And there it is—the die is cast. Dorian will remain young and attractive, but his portrait carries the heavy burden of old age and ugliness.
Since his face and body no longer reflect his soul, he believes himself untouchable. His life becomes a work of art, his pure soul hidden in the portrait of the painting. He now has two faces, one real, the other fantastic.
How far will this man, deprived of scruples and morals, free from the chains of old age and ugliness, go to satisfy his pleasures?
But will this diabolical Narcissus resist the sight of his portrait revealing the darkness of his being?
Tearing the veil of illusion, what will remain of her beauty?
It's a haunting story.

i found this video on youtube that a kid made for school in which he drew stickfigures onto pieces of paper that were cut in varying sizes. his 5 minute video detailing the whole story with these stick figures was more entertaining than this whole book

:) oops

|| 4.0 stars ||

This is most definitely the gayest book that was ever written in the nineteenth century, and I wholeheartedly love it for that.

This book has the most fascinating yet despicable main characters, and I couldn’t help but be outraged and intrigued by everything about them.

Henry is truly a manipulative narcissist, who seems to view himself as the wisest person alive and who takes a perverse pleasure from dominating and shaping other people with his mind. The way he views other people is terribly creepy and dismissive; he appears to look down on anyone and anything as he deems himself utterly superior. Yet, he still manages to charm everyone around him, and convince them that his word is truth. He is, without a doubt, a sociopath.

At the start, I really couldn’t help but feel sad for Henry’s manipulations of the impressionable and naive Dorian. Even if Dorian was vain and egotistical, he wasn’t yet evil, and I feel like he could have been a happy and kind person if it weren’t for Henry’s influences. It was really quite the tragedy…
After a while, though, I obviously lost more and more of my pity for Dorian as he slowly turned into a cruel monster. He grew to be completely apathetic and seemed to have no care or sympathy for anyone other than himself.

The most likable character was definitely Basil. He was very pitiful and slightly pathetic, but he did have a very pure soul, and my heart broke a bit for how he lost the sweet boy Dorian once was to the horror Dorian later became. Basil’s love for him was so desperate and so painful: he worshipped Dorian, heart and soul. Even if Dorian was wholly undeserving of it, Basil’s deep love for him truly moved me.

Overall, I really liked the writing of this book as it was beautiful and often insightful. However, there was one chapter, namely chapter 11, that was literally my worst nightmare: I don’t think I have ever encountered such mind-numbing rambling before in my life. Luckily, this was only once and the rest of the book was simply stunning, so I could forgive it.

The main theme explored in this book is the nature of humanity in its most evil sense and it shows how deceptive beauty and innocence can be.
It also tries to imagine what someone would turn into if they no longer had to answer for their sins: What would a person become when they could live a life without consequences for themselves? This book answers that question, and it’s definitely not pretty.

In summary, this story, but mostly the characters, intrigued the hell out of me, and this book was genuinely so much more engaging than I thought it would be!


n  Oscar Wilde books:n
The Happy Prince - 3.5 stars
The Picture of Dorian Gray - 4.0 stars

"A face without a heart", so said Shakespeare in Hamlet, but it applies to the portrait of Dorian Gray even better.... When the young gentleman Dorian Gray from a wealthy aristocratic family in Victorian England, has his picture completed something is missing, Basil Hallward, the painter senses it and insists that no one sees his greatest work, except a few people ... The witty Lord Henry Wotton, Dorian's soon to be best friend seems amused, a shy artist! All three are fascinated by the painting, discussing it at length in Mr. Hallward's house. The lord is a notorious man, with a well- deserved evil reputation, warned by many to stay away from him. Nevertheless Gray's a lonely orphan, needs excitement in his dreary life, Wotton tells Dorian to have fun while he is still young, it will not last long. Mr. Gray has good looks, and like a moth to a flame the boy can't resist. Dorian wishes that the portrait ages while he remains young, as time goes by, Dorian would give his soul for this, Lord Henry laughs at the oath, strangely his request is fulfilled shortly afterwards. Dorian meets a beautiful seventeen- year- old actress, both fall madly in love, later the nervous Sibyl Vane, gives a really bad performance in front of Gray , and his two friends, Wotton, Hallward, the young gentleman is crushed , and so disappointed he leaves her. Sibyl then kills herself, James her brother had pledged to destroy anyone who harms his sister, he will cause Mr. Gray much concern subsequently. The wicked lord tells the distraught youth to forget about it, "Eternal youth, infinite passion, pleasures subtle and secrets, wild joy and wilder sins". All this and only the picture to show its evil, a great bargain Dorian feels. Rumors abound about Dorian, they the people look at his face and see only purity, Gray continues his hedonistic life, murder , another suicide and a killing results ... In a locked, quiet, dark room upstairs at his home, where the curious Mr. Gray keeps the painting, it Grotesquely Changes, whenever more wickedness is committed by the owner. The ugly side of Dorian, only he sees... Later into the shadows , Dorian goes to get opium, he wants salvation through drugs, blackout his memories but gloom is everywhere, a thick atmosphere of foreboding, intense desperation and immense helplessness, prevails. Reaching for something, that will save his poor soul, make him feel worthwhile that life has some meaning, is all lost? A mournful torrent rushes Dorian forward always forward, into the abyss, the darkness, the endless unknown regions, next oblivion? The light is going out, Dorian must face his destiny, he couldn't escape himself ...

It’s difficult, these days, to come across a book with the right amount of drama while still holding on to philosophical discourse. The Picture of Dorian Gray delivers both. This book needs a highlighter on one hand and your thoughts on the other. Every other sentence is a quote to ponder.

The Picture of Dorian Gray had me thinking long after I finished. It almost left me feeling depressed. I think in today’s world, there is much emphasis on image, at the cost of our souls slowly seeping into an artificial abyss. Yet somehow, we overlook this disease and keep up with appearances.

n  n   

“Nowadays people know the price of everything and the value of nothing.”

n  n

When Dorian Gray arrives in London, he is innocent enough, trying to make life better. However, the masterfully crafted Lord Wotton draws Dorian into a world of deceit, desire, and unhinging power.

When Dorian's friend paints a portrait, capturing the innocence and beauty of young Dorian, it is a shock. Dorian is so mesmerized by his image that he makes a deal to give up his soul so that he can remain young and beautiful.

‘Be careful what you wish for’ is the perfect euphemism to describe Dorian's life after his disillusioned wish. How far will he go to sell his soul?

n  n   

“What of Art?
-It is a malady.
--Love?
-An Illusion.
--Religion?
-The fashionable substitute for Belief.
--You are a skeptic.
-Never! Skepticism is the beginning of Faith.
--What are you?
-To define is to limit.”

n  n

This book made me think of the trillion-dollar beauty industry and the lengths we go to to remain young and beautiful. We can’t open social media without being bombarded with artificial imagery perpetuating the beauty myth. Is it worth it?

When do we turn our cameras toward the beauty of the world? Instead, we focus on our image, carefully perfected with filters. I suppose Oscar Wilde was well aware that the humbling cure for vanity is age. Alas, the realities of the world.

Everyone is desperate to be relevant, to be seen. When they are not...

n  n   

“There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.”

n  n

The Picture of Dorian Gray is a dark, tragic, epic classic with well-crafted writing!

You can’t expect anything less from Oscar Wilde!

5/5 stars.